According to an
independent analysis by the University of Pennsylvania — the largest study to ever examine the Kickstarter community — 9 percent of Kickstarter projects failed to deliver rewards.
The study also found that:
- 8 percent of dollars pledged went to failed projects;
- 7 percent of backers failed to receive their chosen reward; and
- 65 percent of backers agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that “the reward was delivered on time."
Perhaps the most notorious Kickstarter failure was the Coolest Cooler, a decked-out cooler complete with blender, Bluetooth speaker and USB charger, and a cutting board that, back in August of 2014, was the top funded Kickstarter campaign ever. The cooler's creator, Ryan Grepper, raised more than $13 million for his project, breaking Kickstarter's funding record.
But as
Mashable reports, almost two years after Coolest's launch on Kickstarter, one one-third of backers have received their coolers, which has sent the crowdfunding concept into a tailspin.
